Collaborative planning as a prospect to nurturing domestic tourism: perspectives from service providers in mid-western Uganda

Abstract

Abstract This article investigates how collaborative planning can be applied to nurture domestic tourism in midwestern Uganda. Available literature suggests that the country’s domestic tourism potential has not been given adequate consideration; instead more attention is directed to international tourism. The civil wars which afflicted the country between early 1970s to mid-1980s slowed the growth of tourism since the country relied on international tourism more than on domestic tourism. The medium-term growth strategies and outcomes of Uganda indicate that the tourism industry has been growing and contributing a substantial fraction of the country’s National Domestic Product (NDP) since the 1990s. The article focuses on the perspectives regarding the adoption the collaborative planning as a remedy to nurturing domestic tourism portfolio in Uganda. Data were collected in mid-western Uganda among a purposive sample of 32 participants using interviews. The results suggest that collaborative planning through both the internal and external inputs is essential for domestic tourism. Mid-western region is capable of making positive gains if stakeholders choose to collaborate in planning for the domestic tourism sub-sector. This is revealed by a view that Uganda has a wide range of destinations, services, activities and cultural opportunities which the citizenry can visit once collaborative planning is adopted.